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Thursday, 1 April 2010

For our 1st wedding anniversary we took off to Thailand and had an amazing week in bothPattaya and Bangkok. A few kms off the coast of Pattaya is this brilliant Island called Koh Larnwith its pristine beaches and crystal clear water. After an adventurous deep sea diving expedition, we got to this Island and lounged around, sipping on Singha Beer and munching on all sorts of exotic sea food. In between a few dips in the water and sun bathing, we managed to try some exotic Thai food which I must say was bloody cheap and tasted out of this world. Since I wasn't too much of a seafood fan, I opted for chicken and other meat varieties which was not bad at all. Ro went berserk trying lobster and crab and everything fishy and wouldn't stop talking about it. Even now he brings up his savoured sea food expedition in Thailand. We also went with full enthusiasm about trying street food in BKK, but chickened out seeing all that was on display. I shall not say 'what' and gross you all out.

The Thai green curry and red curry in particular caught my fancy and I tried it at home quite a while back. It tasted just as how I remembered it to be and is one of the easiest curries i have ever made. Considering it was my first time with a Thai dish, it turned out pretty awesome. It was served with white jasmine flavoured rice, but we had it with just plain rice and it sure was good enough. You can make this with any meat, sea food, meat and seafood and as a vegetarian dish.. You more or less can decide what goes into it.

Chicken Breasts- 500 gms cut into bite cubes

Bell Pepper- 1 medium size chopped lengthwise(any colour)

Onion/ Shallots- 1/4 cup

Spring onions- 1/4 cup (optional)

Green chillies- 2 slit lengthwise

Thai green curry paste (any brand, store-bought)- 3 tsp (heaps)

Ginger paste- 1 tsp

Garlic paste- 2 tsp

Coriander pwd- 1 tbs

Chilli pwd- 1 tsp (can substitute with Chilli sauce as well)

Fish sauce- 2 tbs

Dark Soy sauce- 1 tsp (or 1 tbs of the regular soy sauce)

Coconut milk- 1 can

Coriander leaves- chopped fine, to garnish

Oil- 2 tbs

Salt- to taste

In a large wok, heat the oil and sauté onions and peppers till soft. Add the ginger and garlic paste, coriander pwd and chilli pwd to this and mix well. In goes the cleaned chicken pieces and once they become light brown, add the Thai green curry paste. Sauté for a few minutes and then add the sauces (fish and soy sauce and if using chilli sauce, that too at this stage) and salt and make sure the entire chicken is covered in this mix. In goes the coconut milk, simmer till the meat is cooked through. I left it on low heat for quite sometime so that the gravy and coconut milk flavour will nicely be infused into the chicken pieces. Add the green chillies and keep stirring once in a while. Just before you take the curry off the flame, sprinkle the spring onions and give one final stir and when you serve it, garnish with coriander leaves. I think the coriander leaves add that extra taste and flavour to the whole meal, try not to avoid that. Ro however got mad seeing the 'leaves' and managed to remove quite a bit of it.

If you do not have the store bought Thai Green Curry Paste, here is a recipe i found online.

Green chillies- 3 chopped

Garlic cloves- 2 minced or approx tsp of paste

Lemon grass stalks- 1, sliced

Kaffir lime leaves- 6

Shallots- 3 finely chopped

Coriander leaves- a handful

Ginger- 1 inch piece finely grated

Peeled rind of half a lime

Coriander pwd- 2 tsp

Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp

Shrimp paste- 1 tsp (optional)

Pepper- 1 tsp

Salt- to taste

Oil- 1/2 tsp or more if desired

Blend all the ingredients together till it forms a thick paste and voila you have your Thai green curry paste. If you have leftover, after using the desired amount in your curry, you can transfer it into a jar and store in the refrigerator for future use. It is an added task to make the paste, but an easy one if you can find all the ingredients.

Notes: You can throw in beans, corn, carrots, peas, potatoes, broccoli, egg plant or any other green vegetable you fancy. Paneer is also a good substitute for meat i guess

The entire dish is made uncovered.

If you have the Thai green curry paste and coconut milk, the desired taste will be achieved no matter what.

Leaving you with a few pics from the trip

Pattaya Bay as seen from the boat that took us to Koh Larn.

Told ya it was blue blue blue:)

Dry fish sold at Koh Larn Island

All sorts of exotic fruits being sold at the Floating Market

That's us at the Floating market...super tanned from our Pattaya expedition :)

Nice to see the face of the good narrator..I love reading ur write ups..ur r soo good at it. Thai urry looks delicious dear..infact I too have a thai green chicken recipe in my draft..but pic is not good..I have to make it again for a nice click.

I LURV me some Thai food. I just got on the Thai cooking bandwagon, and ventured out to make Thai red curry. Onto Green curry next! I must say I highly prefer making the curry pastes from scratch rather than using store bought - unless I bought some crappy brand. Great pics, your trip looks awesome.